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batagor
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Guess the Last 10-15 questions??? 25 Jul 2006, 08:29
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Hi to everyone,

I have a questions for those who have taken the gmat and scored in the 90th+ percentile. Were you guys able to pace yourself in such a way that you have enough time to answer every question in each section? Or do you guys concentrate on the first 15-25 questions in each section, and guess the remaining questions?

Kaplan states that we should really concentrate on the first 15 questions, and just go ahead guess the remaining questions if time is not on your side. However, the OG11 stated that this is only a myth, and that blindly guessing the last 10-15 questions could really undermine the score.

So, for those of you who have scored in the 90th+ percentile, could you tell us your experience regarding this issue. Thanks in advance for your input.
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IHateTheGMAT
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Guess the Last 10-15 questions??? 25 Jul 2006, 09:10
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Do not guess on the last 10-15 questions!!
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kook44
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Guess the Last 10-15 questions??? 25 Jul 2006, 10:06
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I have no idea. I would pace myself so that I have enough time for all the quesitons.
However, last time i took GMATPrep, I got #8 & #19 wrong, then got 9 out of the last 11 wrong because i was running out of time & had to guess. Got a 49 on the Quant.
Go figure...
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batagor
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Guess the Last 10-15 questions??? 25 Jul 2006, 22:19
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Yes, I have the same experience too. I took the gmatprep, and got 2 incorrect answers in the first 15 questions, and got probably 80% incorrect on the last 20 questions, and still get a score of 48.

The case is slightly different for the verbal section. I got the first 15 questions correct (all of them), and answered 80% of the last 20 questions incorrectly, and only got a score of 34.

So that's why I'd like to know how the real test works?? (Especially those who have taken the test and scored in 90th+ percentile). Does Kaplan and PR strategies work (by concentrating on the first 15-20 questions), or should we really keep pace and try to answer each and every question correctly.

Thanks.
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chiragr
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Guess the Last 10-15 questions??? 26 Jul 2006, 16:35
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Pacing your self is more beneficial than guessing last few questions.

Trick is to know when you can not solve question guess and move on.

I believe, You can not answer first 15 questions correctly unlsess you are scoring very high! So, Wouldn’t you say its wise to guess and move on if your level is 600 and you are encountering 750 level question? Spending more time will not make it correct as the question may be out of your skill scope. So I would strongly suggest to practice and to move on even on first question also, in case you can not solve it withing appropriate time.

About first few questions, It would be appropriate to spend bit more time initially before giving up but AGAIN, ultimately you need to know when to give up and move on so you can finish majority of questions.

Chirag
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lackeym77
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Guess the Last 10-15 questions??? 27 Jul 2006, 14:21
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I got a 48 on the quant and a 40 on the verbal (710 overall). I finished both sections, but had to guess on a few questions. Strongly agree with pacing suggestion -- the whole thing about the first 10-15 questions mattering exclusively is total BS. The OG11 is correct when it says that's a myth. If you spend 3-4 minutes on a problem and can't go through entire process of elimination sequence, just guess from the possible answer choices you've narrowed it to and move on. Do not spend all your time on first 10-15 questions, or you'll end up with a terrible score if you have to guess on the last 15+ questions....

Marcus
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u2lover
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Guess the Last 10-15 questions??? 27 Jul 2006, 14:26
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lackeym77
the whole thing about the first 10-15 questions mattering exclusively is total BS. The OG11 is correct when it says that's a myth.
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it does? what's the page/section in the OG11?

thanks

ps... I strongly agree with pacing, otherwise you're screwed. Happened to me on 1st attempt... had to guess on last 10-15 in verbal, got miserable 24 :oops:
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Guess the Last 10-15 questions??? 28 Jul 2006, 22:35
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u2lover


it does? what's the page/section in the OG11?

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Page 17, that is.
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